Flash kinetics in liquefied noble gases: Studies of alkane activation and ligand dynamics at rhodium carbonyl centers, and a search for xenon-carbene adducts

Abstract

A general introduction is given to place the subsequent chapters in context for the nonspecialist. Results are presented from a low temperature infrared (IR) flash kinetic study of C-H bond activation via photoinduced reaction of Cp*Rh(CO)2 (1) with linear and cyclic alkanes in liquid krypton and liquid xenon solution. No reaction was observed with methane; for all other hydrocarbons studied, the rate law supports fragmentation of the overall reaction into an alkane binding step followed by an oxidative addition step. For the binding step, larger alkanes within each series (linear and cyclic) interact more strongly than smaller alkanes with the Rh center. The second step, oxidative addition of the C-H bond across Rh, exhibits very little variance in the series of linear alkanes, while in the cyclic series the rate decreases with increasing alkane size. Results are presented from an IR flash kinetic study of the photoinduced chemistry of Tp*Rh(CO)2 (5; Tp* = hydridotris(3,5-dimethylpyrazolyl)borato) in liquid xenon solution at –50 °C. IR spectra of the solution taken 2 μs after 308 nm photolysis exhibit two transient bands at 1972-1980 cm-1 and 1992-2000 cm-1, respectively. These bands were assigned to (η3-Tp*)Rh(CO)•Xe and (η2-Tp*)Rh(CO)•Xe solvates on the basis of companion studies using Bp*Rh(CO)2 (9; Bp* = dihydridobis(3,5-dimethyl pyrazolyl)borato). Preliminary kinetic data for reaction of 5 with cyclohexane in xenon solution indicate that both transient bands still appear and that their rates of decay correlate with formation of the product Tp*Rh(CO)(C6H11)(H). The preparation and reactivity of the new complex Bp*Rh(CO)(pyridine) (11) are described. The complex reacts with CH3I to yield the novel Rh carbene hydride complex HB(Me2pz)2Rh(H)(I)(C5H5N)(C(O)Me) (12), resulting from formal addition of CH3I across the Rh-C bond concomitant with hydride transfer from B to Rh. Thermolysis of 12 induces migration of the Rh hydride to the α-carbon to give HB(Me2pz)2Rh(I)(C5H5N)(CH(O)Me) (13). Both 12 and 13 have been structurally characterized by X-ray diffraction. Results are presented from a picosecond pump-probe study designed to measure the impact of added xenon on the singlet-to-triplet intersystem crossing rates of diarylcarbenes. Within the error margins of the measurements, no effect of added xenon was observed.